Bronisław Dąbrowski (2 November 1917 – 25 December 1997) was a

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken *Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin screenwr ...

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

of the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. He was auxiliary bishop of

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...

1962–1993 and general secretary of the

Polish Episcopal Conference The Polish Episcopal Conference or Polish Bishops' Conference ( pl, Konferencja Episkopatu Polski) is the central organ of the Catholic Church in Poland. It is composed of 2 cardinals, 28 archbishops and 118 bishops. Members ** President – abp ...

1968–1993. In 1982 Dąbrowski became titular archbishop '' pro hac vice'' and in 1993 senior bishop of the Warsaw Archdiocese. Because of his function in the Episcopal Conference, Dąbrowski participated in political events of communist Poland. In December 1981 he wrote a letter to General Wojciech Jaruzelski in which he condemned the proclamation of the martial law in Poland and the subsequent repressions by the regime.

Biography

Dąbrowski was born in Grodziec, now

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

, in 1917. At the age of 29 he took his first vows in the Orionine Fathers congregation and on 10 June 1945 became a Catholic priest. He conducted charitable work on behalf of war-injured children, helping to establish an orphanage home in

Izbica Kujawska Izbica Kujawska is a town in central Poland with 2,808 inhabitants (2004). It is situated in the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship (since 1999), having previously been in Włocławek Voivodeship (1975-1998). Archaeology In the Izbica forest on the ...

. In 1950 Dąbrowski became director of the Office of the Episcopate of Poland and a year later led the Secretariat of the Primate of Poland. Upon the recommendation of Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński,

Pope John XXIII Pope John XXIII ( la, Ioannes XXIII; it, Giovanni XXIII; born Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli, ; 25 November 18813 June 1963) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 28 October 1958 until his death in June 19 ...

nominated Dąbrowski to the post of auxiliary bishop of

. The

consecration Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service. The word ''consecration'' literally means "association with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different grou ...

ceremony took place in St. John's Cathedral in Warsaw on 25 March 1962. From 1968 to 1993 Dąbrowski was secretary of the

. At the Vatican he represented the

Polish Church , native_name_lang = , image = Basílica_de_Nuestra_Señora_de_Licheń,_Stary_Licheń,_Polonia,_2016-12-21,_DD_36-38_HDR.jpg , imagewidth = 250px , alt = , caption = Basilica of Our Lady ...

in its efforts aimed at establishing a permanent Polish Church administration in the post-German " Recovered Territories". He routinely conducted discussions with representatives of the Polish communist party and government regarding this and other issues, insisting on the various rights and freedoms for the Polish Church and resisting repression in religious life and society. Dąbrowski participated in the crucial Magdalenka and

Round Table The Round Table ( cy, y Ford Gron; kw, an Moos Krenn; br, an Daol Grenn; la, Mensa Rotunda) is King Arthur's famed table in the Arthurian legend, around which he and his knights congregate. As its name suggests, it has no head, implying that e ...

negotiations which laid the groundwork for the systemic change in Poland (1988 and 1989). In February 1993 Dąbrowski retired. He died on

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus, Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by country, around t ...

Day 1997 in Warsaw and was buried at the Powązki Cemetery.

References

External links

Diocese Site
1917 births 1997 deaths People from Konin County Polish Roman Catholic titular bishops 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in Poland {{Poland-RC-bishop-stub